Pain of Reality
by random-jack
Summary: Hawkgirl is in Hiding, John is broken and the Justice league just isn't the same, Can John and Shayera have what they want or do they even know what they want. No JLU. Rated T for swearing. AU. Enjoy
1. Exile and Renewal

Exile and Renewel

A/N: Balance is on the Back Burner for now, I've lost my way with the story and its becoming far too complicated and time consuming. This will be much more HG/GL focused so hopefully i can't trip myself up. Let me know what you think. I do intend to Finish Balance by the year 2030, its a promise.

Shayera Propped her back up against the wall of the cave, right leg straightened out, a small amount of blood stubbornly refused to stop leaking from the gunshot wound, she'd been careless, then again she no longer cared, why couldn't the idiot have aimed a little higher and put her out of her self inflicted torture once and for all. She laughed at the pure scale of her failing, soldier and hero of Thanagar, Hero on Earth and now, traitor to two worlds, the breaker of two hearts, Exiled on Earth, Banished from Thanagar under threat of a very prolonged execution. All because she was to cowardly to pick the side she truly wanted and tell anyone on Earth the truth about herself. Its not as if any part of her could at least rally some sort of pride for the fact she saved the Earth, after all, the cost was her planet, her friends and her family. She shook herself, trying to stop the memories forming, maybe if she closed her eyes she could escape at least the pain of it all….

6 Months ago - Hro Talaks Command Ship

_How could it come to this? How could she have made such a mess of such a simple mission? There was no pressure on earth, not like the battles she'd fought alongside her people with, no explosions, no plasma fire cutting people she'd known for years down. All she had to do was learn of the earths defences and capabilities, for the first two earth years it was simple, no one cared except her small almost cult like following in midway, the world was to busy with the heroics of Superman, the Flash or even Batman. She had no sympathy, at that time they were primitive, always fighting amongst themselves, money, greed and power the same as so many other races that met an untimely demise due to their own failings._  
_Then things got complicated, the white Martian invasion happened, how had Thanagar not warned her, they were suppose to monitor these things. Caught off guard for the first time on Earth she made the decision that changed everything, answered J'onns call and Joined the Justice League._  
_This is were everything changed, at first she carried on as usual, cold, distant and emotionless. Only aiming for the mission, as a soldier does. However bit by bit they chipped away her defences, her pride and her barriers. First, the Flash, at first she hated the guy and had straightened out many idiots like him on Thanagar, but he broke her, she ended up coming to care for him, he reminded her of her brother. _  
_Then Wonder Woman, this she really didn't expect, a spoilt, feministic princess, religious to the core an exact opposite of her in almost every way, but because of this they always had debates, sparred and ended up developing a surprisingly close friendship._  
_J'onn, well how could any do anything but not befriend J'onn, amazingly caring, even if he seemed so alien and distant, a sly sense of humour not many understood and his ability to carry on despite having lost everything. Now Shayera was actually jealous of that._  
_Superman, also a shock, the guy was practically a god, yet most of the time he was more down to Earth and friendly than anyone, never judging,_ _always doing his best to help. If a little blind to the realities of the world, his heart was in the right place._  
_Batman, always judging, always questioning, completely in tune with the harsh realities of the world, but somehow underneath the Bat suit, there was something, she didn't know what, but the sparring, the chess. There was a silent and mutual understanding between her and Batman_  
_Then of course, John. Stubborn, never accepting help, always believing his ideas were best, they always argued and at first it was real arguing, both unable to stand each other, but then she found herself getting pulled in, months flew by and before she new it she was standing in front of John helmet removed and leaning in for one of the best moments of her life….._

Her eyes opened, tears lined them and began to fall, she didn't try to stop them, that would require effort and she had none to spare, what would be the point. She glimpsed though the tears to her leg the bleeding had stopped and had already begun to repair, her leg would be fine, she'd survive, but what was the point?

Detroit

John sat at his couch, it had taken six months for Oa to send a new ring, they had spent ages interrogating him how the ring had come to be destroyed a feat which was suppose to be near impossible.  
The ring remained on the floor, he couldn't find the stomach to put it back on, not yet anyway, he had a date with a twelve pack to continue getting to know. This wasn't the first time he'd sat there with a broken heart, but this time it felt truly broken, a dull ache had persisted ever since Shayera left. He cursed himself for bringing her up, he hated her, but he couldn't seem to let go of her, part of him couldn't help but worry where the hell she was, the news sure as hell wasn't helping, every now and then some idiot would appear on the national news claiming to have shot her. His heart would skip a beat half of him wishing it'd be true and that he'd be able to move on and half of him praying she was alive…  
A knocking at the door snapped him out of his thought, he really wasn't in the mood to deal with Wally or Clark again today, he felt like a dick for how he was treating them lately, after all their only concerned, but they make it worse he tried to go to a meeting a few weeks ago, he left early claiming illness, but he could not stand the gaping hole that had been ripped into the team. The other looked like crap to, they had a perfect balance with the seven of them, Clark seemed colder, this was the fist time in a long time he'd suffered such a personal betrayal, the same could be said for Diana who had vowed to beat her senseless should she be lucky enough to cross paths, J'onn barley said anything now. Wally seemed to have taking a big hit too, John knew they'd been close as well. Then there was Bruce and this was the most surprising of all, he seemed a even colder and no one could understand why, Clark receive a kryptonite laced knuckle duster to the face after he pestered him to the point he lost his cool, after that it became clear, Bruce and Shayera seemed to run most of the day to day things around the watchtower also the pair of them were usually the ones to come up with plans and organise things, suddenly Batman was trying to do everything, he'd even attempted to tackle crimes in Midway as well as Gotham, despite the knuckle duster, Clark took over Midway, which much to everyone's surprise seemed to have a crime problem similar to that of Gotham except it was much more sporadic.  
"I'll let myself in then" came a voice  
"Look I told you wally…..oh" John was speechless he'd expected Wally who had pestered every other day or Clark, but standing at his door was the Batman.  
"It's time to quit moping, we need you back on the team and we need you now" ordered Batman  
"Look im just not-" attempted John who dropped his jaw as Batman grabbed Johns' bag and teleported it to the Watchtower "Hey!"  
"Either do something about it, or do nothing but move on and get back to the Watchtower"  
"What do you mean move on? Wait you know-"  
"About you and Shayera, please it was obvious"  
"Trust you to figure it"  
"Its what I do"  
"Look, I tried to come back but all that place does is remind me of her"  
"Okay so your never coming back then?"  
"Well no, I will come back, I just need-"  
"Time?, its been six months John"  
John remained silent, he couldn't argue that  
"What do you want John?"  
"I don't know" mumbled John  
"What do you want John?"  
"I don't know, I don't know! I cant get her out of my head, I cant stop thinking about her, I cant stop worrying about her. But there's a part of me that couldn't care less, that wouldn't care if she was dead-" began ranting John as he went face to face with batman  
"You don't mean that" simply stated Batman not even remotely bothered by the out of control, drunk former marine in his face.  
"How would you know"  
"Because you struggled to say it, and you've also got tears In your eyes"  
John remained silent again  
"why do you hate her"  
"She betrayed me" blurted John  
"She betrayed you?"  
"I mean all of us, we let her in and she stabbed us all in the back"  
"Not entirely"  
"What are you talking about, you voted she stay out"  
"Yes well, I hadn't had time to think on it, but answer me this, if she betrayed us, how come she is still on earth, without a planet to call home and hated by everyone"  
"I don't understand"  
"Double agents in any form tend to come out of the situation into brilliant situations"  
"Fine so at the last minute she made the right decision, that doesn't change anything"  
"She made the right decision did she?"  
"Of course she did"  
"So she went from destroying the earth and probably been regarded as a hero by her people, would almost have definitely been given a higher standing and she would've gone home with her people to her planet, yet she chose earth, knowing full well she'd be hated for it"  
John remained silent and took a seat as the effect of the words hit him "fine I'll be back in a moment just let me get-" he cut himself off as he noticed Batman was no longer there.  
There was no point sitting there moping anymore, or feeling sorry for himself, he wasn't the only one hurt through all this, he wasn't going to let everyone keep checking up on him like he was on suicide watch at a mental health institute. John slipped the ring on feeling the familiar power wash over him and clear his head of alcohol. With his head held high for the first time in months, despite having no clue about his future, he grabbed his Justice league communicator and called in "Watchtower, its Green Lantern, I'm coming home" he took one last look at his ransacked looking apartment before finally stepping out.  
"Lantern, welcome back, sorry John but would you be able to assist Superman quickly, he's scouring the forests north west of Montréal. Apparently there have been reported sightings of Soloman Grundy" Replied J'onn  
"Grundy? I thought he was-"  
"I know, we checked Grundys' grave does appear to have been tampered with" interrupted J'onn who already knew what John was going to say.  
"Right im on my way" finished John as he lit himself in the familiar green and blasted his way north.

A/N: There we go then slightly more down to Earth and Hopefully I wont trip myself up with complex plots this time, if anyone sees a complex plot developing I want them to slap me (with a review…or why isn't there a dislike :P) Anyway as for Balance the last two chapter I posted have been deleted and are currently been rewritten.

If anyone thinks Batman is OOC - Relax he knows what he is doing.

Take 3

Random-Jack


	2. Visitor and Pain

Visitor and Pain

_Unknown?_  
_…Humanity, oh so focused, yet oh so blind, they've just pushed back a so called invasion and yet they still fight each other, the same wars still continue and the same mistrusts still exist, I walk through this building, one of the most defended on the planet as if I've been here for decades, I have what I need, I will find her, I will right this wrong…_

Shayera slowly opened her eyes, she'd managed to grab a few hours sleep, yet still felt exhausted, she knew she'd have to move on soon, but so far she'd been fairly isolated here, and it would take an exceptional feat for a human to find her in this cave.  
A scream pierced the morning quiet, Shayera had since learned to ignore these things, she remembered the ambush she fell for by a group of mercenaries, but then the quiet was pierced by an unearthly roar. This threw Shayera out of her paranoia, that sound couldn't be faked, she'd heard it once before, but how could it be?  
Shayera grabbed her mace, she'd barley touched it since leaving Wayne manor, but even so se refused to leave it, that mace was pretty much the only thing that had been there her entire life, and to hell if Batman was going to run his experiments on it, she cradled it in her hands a few moment remembering its familiar weight, except it felt much heavier. Shayera realised she was getting weaker, the mace never use to feel like more than an extension of her arm, now it felt like a dead weight. She went to the mouth of the cave and looked down to the forest below, she heard another scream and a roar followed by the falling of a tree in the distance. She flexed her wings ready for take off, even though her back was already crying in protest she threw herself from the cliff-face and propelled herself towards the commotion.  
The canopy of the trees was preventing any useful recon, so Shayera gave up and dropped to the forest floor and was immediately knocked of balance by something colliding with her, Shayeras instincts kicked in she used the momentum of her spin to come right back round and grab the person by the throat and hold her in the air.  
"Oh my god its…you" stuttered the woman  
Shayera put the woman on the floor "Whats going on here"  
The woman just stared at Shayera pure terror in her eyes.  
Oh come on she's more scared of me than whatever's tearing up the forest Shayera thought before brandishing her mace and electrifying it, walking closer to the woman before growling "I suggest you run as far away from this area as you can"  
The woman still stood there stunned before coming to her senses and running like a maniac away from the area.  
"Alright then were the hell are you, im very pissed of and I need something to hit" muttered Shayera to herself.  
A tree collapsed suddenly towards Shayera who rolled forward just in time to avoid it, Shayera looked towards the tree to see the massive hulking figure of Soloman Grundy stalking towards her.  
"Grundy, your alive?"  
Grundy kept coming  
"Grundy its me, Shayera, Birdnose don't you remember"  
Grundy picked up the tree and wielded it like a baseball bat  
"Grundy I don't want to hurt you, calm down!"  
Grundy roared before swinging the tree right down in an overhead arc towards Shayera who rolled away just in time again.  
"Alright fine, have it your way" yelled Shayera before darting behind Grundy as he lifted the tree again and swatted him across the back with her mace.  
Grundy quite literally screamed and stumbled forward dropping the tree as he did.  
"What?, Superman can have a three hour long brawl with this guy and I give him one hit and he's screaming, something's not right"  
Preoccupied with her thoughts, her senses came to her just in time to see a massive white fist flying towards her, Shayera couldn't help but scream out in pain as she felt several ribs shatter from the blow that sent her through four trees in the forest.

A little further away

"Lantern" Beamed Superman "J'onn just told me the news welcome back"  
"Thanks Supes, glad to be back, what's going on?"  
"Im trying to listen for anything out of the ordinary, there have been reported sightings of Soloman Grundy in the vicinity.  
"Grundy? I thought.."  
"He was dead? me to, you should've seen the effect he had on Shayera- Oh sorry John" added Superman noticing John stiffen a little  
"No Problem, Wait you know aswell"  
"About you and Shayera? Yeah Batman told us what was going on, Im sorry John"  
"Its ok Superman, its not your fault"  
The conversation was interrupted as a woman came running like a maniac out of the Forrest clearly distressed  
Superman lowered himself to the ground and the woman practically threw herself at him at the same time the Flash came to a grinding halt next to Superman.  
"Whats going on" asked Superman calmly  
The woman looked around wide eyed, before fainting.  
"Flash good timing, take this woman to the nearest hospital would you"  
"Oh, Hi John, Hi Supes" muttered the Flash before taking the Woman  
"Bye John, Bye Flash" he muttered again before disappearing in, well a flash.

"Well we must be close" said superman which was confirmed by the roar of Soloman  
"Lets go, its been awhile" added John as the pair of them raced into the forest and confronted Grundy  
Superman took point whilst John held back  
"Come on Grundy you can't beat me, you never could just give it up, remember when we fought together?"  
Grundy stood still for a moment as if contemplating the choice before throwing a huge punch at superman drilling him deep into the ground.  
"MY god, Supes you okay!" shouted John as he threw a cage around Soloman  
Superman crawled out of the hole clearly stunned "He's much more powerful than I've ever seen him before"  
John had already figured this as the pain of holding Grundy became far to much, John was forced to let go and was shocked at how much energy his ring had used in such a brief period. "your telling me supes, the guy just absorbed most my rings power"  
Superman answered this by delivering a torrent of punched all over Grundy's face before been grabbed by his head and slammed into the ground repeatedly whilst johns constructs made absolutely no impression what so ever. A few moments later and the unthinkable had happened Superman was out cold on the forest floor.  
John couldn't believe his eyes, this was grundy, superman had kicked his guy all over the show, but now superman was out of the picture after a few seconds, John had already contacted the rest of the league, but J'onn and Wonder Woman were on a mission of their own and Batman was on his don't call im at Gotham moods. John mustered up more will and unleashed as large a pure blast as he could, sending Grundy flying through the forest a good kilometre or so, but John could already see Grundy beginning to rise and no mark from the blast could be seen. John steeled himself, reassuring himself that superman would come around and back up would arrive soon.  
So John began a new game of dodging blow and using tiny blasts purely to annoy and keep Grundys attention, the new tactic worked for a few moments before John dodged one blow only to be caught by an instantaneous follow up, John yelled in surprise followed by agony as he felt his protective shield give way and the clear sound of a bone breaking in his arm, as he was flung across the forest.  
John gazed up from the floor to see Grundy stalking towards him, raising a huge fist as he did so, John closed his eyes and done something he hadn't in a long time, he prayed.  
"Im not done with you yet!" cried a familiar voice as he heard Grundy roar in pain, John opened his eyes to see Shayera blood dripping from her mouth as she swung like she was possessed continuously at Grundy, who to Johns surprise was recoiling backwards and still screaming in pain with each blow.  
"Shay?" breathed John as he struggled to stand up. John became nervous as Shayera didn't seem to even notice John standing a mere few metres away. John had seen this look in her eyes only once, it was the face of someone whose only intent was to kill and everything else is unnoticeable. John looked to Superman who had regained his senses and was also staring in shock at the spectacle.  
"Supes im empty, give her a hand before something bad happens" grunted John  
"Im not going to be much use either, I need to recover and im not getting much power from the sun through all this foliage" replied Superman with an edge to his voice John hadn't heard in Superman before. John looked to Superman whose eyes were transfixed on Shayera not Grundy with a similar look to that of Shayera.  
John was brought back to his senses as Grundy hit the ground hard and remained still at last, Shayera meanwhile was on her knees clearly exhausted.  
"and stay down" John heard Shay mutter as she stood up and turned around.  
Shayera was already looking very pale, but she somehow managed to turn a shade whiter as she turned to see John and Superman staring at her. She just stood there clearly frozen as John and Superman couldn't think of anything either.  
The pause was interrupted as Shayera was grabbed by the neck as Grundy once again got up.  
"Why won't you just stop already" gasped Shayera  
Shayera In the brief pause had figured out why she could hurt Grundy yet John and Superman couldn't leave a mark, "magic" muttered Shayera. Grundys power had severely lessened, even so she needed to break his hold before her neck broke. She held out her mace and as she hoped, Grundy grabbed at it with his other hand just as Shayera sent electricity running through the mace, Grundy began screaming again, whilst Shayera gritted her teeth at the electricity flowing through her body, no Thanagarian was allowed an Nth metal weapon till they could withstand its sting.  
Grundy finally relented and recoiled back looking weaker than ever, Shayera was also nearing exhaustion and she could feel her head beginning to spin from the blood loss.  
Shayera looked briefly to John and Superman who were still staring in shock though now both standing. "Forget me" muttered Shayera as she marched up to Grundy and grabbed him by the shoulders.  
"Shay, what are you-? Began John, his question was answered however, as with a yell Shayera heaved herself and Grundy into the air and begun to skyrocket straight up.  
"Oh No"  
"What is she doing, what's wrong"  
"She going to take him as high as she can go and take him out in the air" answered John as he ran into the clearing Shayera and Soloman had made to get a better view.  
"What wrong with that, she fights better up there" replied Superman  
"You heard what she said, you saw how she looked, she doesn't intend to survive" finished John as he got on his radio again  
"J'onn, Wonder woman we have a serious problem we need one of you here right now"

Up above

Soloman was roaring his disapproval of the new environment as Shayera continued to drag him skywards and tried a new attempt to squeeze the life out of her instead, Shayera screamed in agony as she continued to drag Soloman along even as she felt yet another rib break.  
Then Shayera struck Soloman with the hilt of her mace causing him to briefly let go just as she too let go of Soloman, he screamed as he plummeted towards the earth, Shayera dived and quickly overtook to falling Soloman before doing a 180 to launch herself back towards Soloman even as her mind and wings screamed for release. She held her mace out in front and collided with Soloman at such a force the mace actually impaled Soloman in the chest and broke Shayeras arm. Grundys scream cut to a gurgled groan but Shayera was too slow through all the pain and the last thing she saw was a massive white fist wallop her in the face.

On the ground

"She done it?, She actually done it!" exclaimed Superman in surprise who was viewing the events unfold as John could not see though his blurred eyes as the pain began to grip him.  
"She made it?" John said through the pain  
"I think so she seems- Oh"  
"Oh? Oh what"  
"Shayera just impaled Grundy with her mace-"  
"you said that already" exclaimed an impatient John  
"She must of hurt herself even more, she couldn't move fast enough, Grundy just swatted her like a fly….I think she's unconscious, she's falling"  
"Can't you catch her?" asked John fear lacing his mind  
"John I told you, im so weak right now I need to bathe in yellow sun and its just not permeating here" explained Superman coldly "Im sorry John"  
John grabbed the communicator again "How long are you are you going to be!?"  
"We'll be there in about a minute we're going as fast as we can" Replied Wonder woman "Whats going on?"  
"I don't have time to explain!" Cut John before trying the Flash only to get no reply.  
"I swear if he's chatting up that woman who ran out the forest I'll kill him"  
"John we need to move look she's veering of to the left, she not plummeting vertically"  
Soloman Grundy chose this moment too crash in a huge heap not to far from them, the end of the mace now sticking lout of Grundys back, not a sound came from the beast.  
"Come on, Grundys not a problem now…and how come he hit the ground already where is Shayera?" asked John trying to claw back some professionalism  
"She's not falling anywhere near as fast as Grundy, her wings are acting like air brakes, but still I don't think she going to want to hit the ground at that-"  
"okay I get the picture" snapped John as he and Superman ran in the direction they assumed she was falling as they could no longer see her through the trees. "Just keep your ears-"  
"I just heard a massive splash this way" interrupted Superman peeling of the left.  
Seconds later they burst into a clearing with a small lake, in which they could both just make out the end of a massive wing sinking below the water.  
"Oh god" exclaimed John as he and Superman dived into the lake.  
As they both neared her sinking form, John couldn't help but admire how peaceful she looked all the blood had washed away from the impact, Superman already had an arm under one shoulder so John grabbed the other and heaved her towards the surface.  
As they broke the surface they could just make out the Javelin landing at the lake edge, J'onn was already at the waters edge.  
J'onn stood shocked as Superman and John dragged the lifeless looking body of Shayera towards the lakes edge, just as Diana came over, despite Dianas threat even she was taken back by the sight "by Hera" just about escaped her lips….

_Somewhere_  
_….The justice league, The watchtower, how quaint. She spent around two years there, then that's were my search will continue, after all those idiots at midway didn't know a thing, I bet they have tonnes of secrets up there….._

They'd just got Shayera onto the javelin, to everyones surprise Shayera was somehow breathing, even if they were slow choking gasps for air, it was better than anyone could've believed after John told what happened.  
"So Grundy must've been controlled by magic, no wonder you got beat Supes" added J'onn  
They'd just informed Batman what had happened, he remained silent but to everyone's surprise agreed to meet the league at the watchtower.  
"Probably wants to make sure she doesn't steal any access codes again" muttered Diana having returned to a more icy state who received a glare from John.  
"How is she" asked John already fearing the worst.  
"it's a miracle she can breathe John, she has a number of broken ribs, her right arm has shattered completely all the way up to her collar bone. She has a number of aged gunshot wounds that haven't healed correctly, her left leg is broke at the ankle and her left wing appears to be dislocated at best. The only reason she is alive is the fact her back and head appear to only have minor damage, even so she grows weaker by the moment" replied J'onn solemnly.  
"her chances?"  
J'onn remained silent unable to tell John his fears.  
John didn't pester for an answer he knew what the silence meant.  
Batman was awaiting at the hangar and informed the league that he had medically studied every one of the league in case of such a situation and stalked of after J'onn after ordering Clark and John to rest.  
Clark didn't need telling twice and headed straight back to space to bask in the sun, John despite feeling exhausted refused and came to an agreement to get something to drink at least and clean himself before anything else.

_….Well congratualtions to the designer of this "watchtower" whoever it was must clearly be the most paranoid person in existence, you may have delayed me, but with some of the most advanced tech in the known universe at my side. I'll be there soon and i will find her and i will solve this..._

A/N Well I must admit im enjoying writing this so far, so much less stress than before. So Batman knows everyones physiology, Superman appears to be in two minds at the moment. Also anyone thinking that John is too fond of Shayera at the moment, I am going to attempt some soul searching with the aid of a humble mirror for him, next chapter by Sunday as I am enjoying this. Also the _italics person will be revealed as i have no intention of dragging this out_

Warning to all in the next chapter medical dramas are not my forte.

Thanks for reviews and follows

Random-Jack out


	3. Matter of the Soul

Chapter 3

Soul Searching and reveal

Johns ears were ringing and despite the efforts of Wonder Woman and her attempt at a sling John arm was hurting like mad, but even though J'onn insisted on having a look John refused not wanting to distract him from….Her  
John sighed before splashing his face with water, just minutes ago John had watched as Shayera was carried to the med bay, at that precise moment it felt as if a piece of his heart had gone with her, but now?  
Johns heart had now cooled, those memories were returning, Shayera a spy, The invasion, Being captured, having to hide and walk away whilst people needed his help and of course Him, Hro Talak, what the hell could Shayera have possibly seen in such a bastard, John looked to the mirror.  
_You can't blame Hro, it takes two to love, Shayera used you, you were no more than a way to pass the time till she went home again._  
No there's more too it than that, we don't know everything about this  
_But that's precisely it, you never knew because she didn't want you to know, now look at what you've got, just five minutes near her and your arms broke she'll be the death of you._  
Isn't love worth dying for, after everything, she stood on that cliff and said she never lied about us.  
_The last pathetic hope of someone who needs something to cling to._  
She knows me, she saved my life, she doesn't care about my ring, she managed to get my mind right even when Katma couldn't. I love her and as much pain as there is in the past, the past is past, I can't live my life wondering what could've been.  
_If that were true then why is it you have to continuously reassure yourself, if it were true these dark memories wouldn't exist…_

John sighed and looked at the mirror again, he looked a state, John sighed to himself and turned around to see the Flash stood there.  
"John im sorry, I was just making sure-"  
"It's okay Flash, I understand, it wouldn't be you if you didn't care like that"  
"John, we've been friends a long time, talk to me" almost pleaded the Flash  
"Ha, when did you mature"  
"Don't try and pull a joke to get out of this, John we all know about you and Shayera"  
"I just don't understand it"  
Flash remained silent for once allowing John to continue.  
"I love her, I really do, I can't get her out of my head and I can't stop worrying about her. But at the same time, I wish I didn't, I wish I never knew her. Part of me hates her Wally and every time I even think about her all the negatives come flooding back"  
"But what are you scared of, John? You hate her for the past but you don't know the future."  
"That's just it Wally, I thought I knew her, that's the worst bit of it all, I thought I understood her, Wally I don't know anything about her, she never spoke of her past or Thanagar, how many more skeletons is she hiding"  
"John, did you ever ask her about her past, maybe there is a reason she won't just talk about it, what if something terrible happened there, she might have a good reason for not talking about it"  
"Like been a spy and having a secret soon to be married boyfriend, I thought she was perfect, she never seemed to make a mistake or cause problems"  
"John, isn't that the point, there's no such thing as perfect, John at the end of the day, she betrayed her own people for us, she rejected her own planet for us and she turned her back on Hro….think on that John, because I don't think there is any circumstance I could imagine were I would destroy the Earth to save an alien world, any of us" Wally actually had a tear in his eye as he finished speaking and turned to leave.  
"Wally, I don't know, but thank you"  
"No problem"

_….So this is the Watchtower, not bad, still woefully under defended and armed, ah here it is, the control room, and no ones here, this is too easy…._

J'onn was working furiously on Shayera, despite all of Batmans data that had been gathered on them all, no anaesthetics were dropping Shayera out of consciousness, though they had at least numbed the pain somewhat. It turned out that Batman was also incredibly versed in the art of medical treatment and had already cleaned out all the old gunshot wounds, J'onn had given up been surprised by Batmans numerous talents.  
"Just…Let me….Go…Please" rasped Shayera  
Batman and J'onn ignored the pleading and carried on, she'd attempted to resist for a moment but was now so weak Batman could easily pin her down.  
Superman came striding into the room looking like nothing had even happened to him "How is she" asked Superman  
"She is still getting weaker, we cant do anything major for her because nothing we have is sedating her.  
"Wonder Woman to Batman" Came Dianas voice over his cowl.  
"Wonder woman?"  
"Sorry to distract, but something accessed the watchtowers systems and data"  
"Those files can only be accessed from the control room, Diana initiate lockdown of the Watchtower, any trace of what was accessed specifically"  
"Hawkgirl" spat Diana before a brief alarm indicated the Watchtower locking down.

_….Ha, they took the bait, she's here, she's on the watchtower….._

John chose this moment this moment to enter the medical room and was immediately taken back by what he saw, somehow Shayera was looking even worse.  
Looks like you get your wish, time to move on. Came the negative thoughts again.  
John quickly refocused as Diana came in behind him.  
"Di, what's going on, what was that alarm" asked John  
"Someone or something accessed the contol room systems specifaclly searching for "Hawkgirl" Those systems can only be accessed from the control room itself, we have an intruder, Diana, John, begin patrols this level only, the flash is lapping the Watchtower as we speak" answered Batman for Diana, who received a death glare in return before turning and leaving.

_…Ah, thank you lady, you saved me opening the door, now lets see what we-…_

"I think I'd rather stay" John replied to Batman  
"Fine Superman you go, John you can stay" Sighed Batman  
"It'll be fine John no one…." Started Superman  
"…Erm Supes, you-" Began John  
"Everyone be quiet"  
The room went death quiet except for the sound of Shayera long rasping breathing, Batman narrowed his eyes at Superman in the traditional "what" look.  
"Excluding me there are four of us in this room correct?"  
_…time to move…._  
"Then why can I hear five heartbeats in this room" finished superman as everyone began looking around.  
"Bzzzt, access denied"  
Everyone stared at the door wich now had a red light flashing above it. J'onn had no choice but to carry on tending to Shayera, Batman and superman got into defensive stances. John on the other hand had another idea having recharged his ring in his quarters, he formed a malleable wall of energy from ceiling to floor around the door then compressed the material. A hole erupted in a portion of the energy, however the material continued to mold around the invisible being revealing the outline quite clearly of a Thanagarian.  
"John, on my mark, erase you constuct" grinned Superman as he raised his fist  
"With pleasure, try not to kill though, some information would be nice" replied John  
"Wait you don't underst-" mumbled the Thanagarian through the constuct  
"Now!" shouted Supemran lunging forward and connecting hit punch to the Thanagarians head just as the construct fell. The punch had the desired effect, the now visible Thanagarian Sailed through the air and smashed face first into the wall far off to the right of Shayera and past another two beds. The Thanagarian rose to his feet and attempted to step forward before falling of to his side clearly disorientated.  
Superman closed up, whilst John held back.  
Superman grabbed the struggling to rise Thanagarian by the shoulders and threw him against the wall again.  
The Thanagarian seemingly having managed to regain some sense threw an unseen device at Superman, who was frozen were he stood as electricity coursed through his body. The Thanagarian drew a sword and John chose this moment to strike, a giant green fist smashed into the Thanagarians face just as he turned to face John. Blood spurted from the his nose and the sound of metal hitting metal was heard as the sword fell to the floor, to Johns' annoyance the Thanagarian begun to get up again, however the Thanagarian had barley lifted his head before the now freed superman clasped both hands around his neck and lifted him clean off the ground, John used his ring to bind his wings and arms to his body.  
"You've got seconds to talk before I lose it" threatened Superman whose eyes glew red to back up the threat before lossening his grip a little.  
"Im here to find out what happened about this "invasion" Im not here to harm anyone, if I was I'd have done so whilst you had no idea I was here" Gasped the Thanagarian.  
"What?" asked Superman dumbfounded.  
"Im a hunter, I track down AWOLS, rougues, double agents, traitors if I can I drag them back to Thanagar to face the authorities and if not I erdicate the problem. Im also first to have to deal with any fallout from these individuals actions"  
"What the hell are you talking about?!"  
"This "Invasion" a group of rather angry green lanterns came to Thanagar and started accusing us of war crimes and attempted genocide, there is absolutely nothing on record what so ever about and interaction between Earth and Thanagar so I was sent to investigate"  
Batman chose this moment to question before Superman did anything stupid  
"and?" was the simple question he asked  
"and what?"  
"What did you find"  
"Not much yet, I started from the beginning I haven't investigated the actual invasion force itself, according to the earth the whole thing was set up by this Hawkgirl"  
"So now you're here to execute her" asked Batman sternly as Superman begun to tighten his grip much more.  
"Wait no, no I…she's my…Sister…" Coughed out the Thanagarian  
The revelation briefly shocked Batman to silence and caused Superman to drop the Thanagarian to the floor were he remained gasping for breath, John remained on the other side of the room mouth hanging agape.  
"Why do you think I was stood there like an idiot when you found me, it doesn't make sense, she's suppose to be dead"  
"Dead?" asked John  
"She died, we got confirmation of it about a year and a half ago, mission went wrong, they were ambushed, no survivors"  
"A year and a half, Shayeras been here four and a half years, your just making this up to save your skin" exclaimed Superman  
"No, hold on earth years to Thanagarian years….ah"  
"Ah? Ah what" asked Batman  
"The day that Shayera died is the day She appeared on earth, im Rhian by the way, Rhian Hol"

A/N: Well there we go, I don't intend to make this an extremely long story so expect charaters do develop rather fast. Might have ended this Chapter a bit abruptly but I thought it was rather fitting.  
Next Chapter Rhian attempts to explain more, possible snippets of Shayeras past and John will get a rather harsh way of deciding his future.

Thanks for the reveiws and follows.

Random-Jack


	4. Ruin and Ultimatum

Chapter 4

Warning: My spell check has failed for some obscure reason (as well as grammar) so this may be very rough until I can find a solution (yes I proof read but other reader usually pick up even after a proof read I find)

Ruin and Ultimatum

The Flash and Diana entered the room after receiving an alert from Batman, they arrived to find everyone with the exception of J'onn who was working on the now unconscious Shayera, staring at a rather dishevelled looking Thanagarian on the other side of the room, Wally just stood there waiting for a signal, however Diana allowed her instincts and newly found hatred of Thanagarians to launched herself at him.  
"Hold, Wonder Woman" attempted Batman.  
"Oh for the love of-" mumbled Rhian as he figured what was about to happen.  
Diana didn't hear Batmans call and delivered huge blow to his abdomen, Rhian couldn't help but let out a yell of pain as he felt a couple of ribs cracking as he once again crashed into the wall before falling to his hands and knees coughing.  
Diana went in to deliver another strike to the head, but was caught by Superman.  
"Clark? Let go of me!" threatened Diana  
"Wonder Woman, identities, also you don't understand whats going on here" whispered Superman as Diana stopped struggling and was released.  
"I already know your identities…I accessed the tower…remember" coughed Rhian who was still on the floor.  
"Er, are you ok?" asked the Flash noticing no one else seemed to care.  
"…Oh yeah…Fine…Just need to…Catch my breath….Good Punch"  
"Your lucky you didn't get more, what's going on" asked Diana  
"Wonder Woman, Flash meet Rhian Hol, Shayeras brother, apparently" informed Batman  
"Wait Shayera has a brother, she never told us-" began the Flash  
"She didn't tell us a lot of things if you remember correctly" cut in Diana who received glares from John, Wally and Rhian.  
"Look, I know you don't want it, but I can help" added Rhian deciding to ignore Dianas remark.  
"We don't need your kinds help, we know what that entails" cut Wonder Woman  
"Really, well why don't we ask the person working on her how things are going?" turning his attention to J'onn "Well, she's worse isn't she?"  
J'onn hated these situations, he felt partially guilty for the mess in the first place, after all he never could read Shayeras mind and he declared her to be no threat anyway, ignoring Dianas piercing glare he gave his answer "We have some basic information on Thanagari- well Shayera, but we don't know her pain levels or how long she can stay like this for, if she was human she'd have about two hours left at best"  
"Look I have a ship, a deep space long term ship, it has a large amount of medical technology on board and its obviously built with a Thanagarian in mind, I'll leave every weapon I possess in this room I you insist, but her best chance is on my ship"  
"Where is your ship?" questioned Batman  
"Erm…on the watchtower, the hangar" replied Rhian a little more sheepishly.  
"How did you bypass the- never mind for now, you leave your weapons here, so much as breathe unexpectedly and you won't be of use to anyone" threatened Batman  
"Thank you, but I'd go steady on the last point" replied Rhian as he begun dropping numerous devices on an empty bed.  
"And why is that"  
"Simple, if I go missing or don't check in on a set basis, the real Thanagar will come knocking, I guess I can assume you don't want that"  
"Is that a threat" hissed Wonder Woman  
"Not at all, it's simply the truth" statedRhian who had now dropped two pistols of some sort, a rifle, his sword, two daggers and a number of devices no one recognized. "Right im done"  
"Well, lead the way" said Superman

Edge of the Solar System

_….Soon Earth…soon….This time, no tricks, no ridiculous political nonsense, this time we wipe them out, she will watch as it burns and then I will finish her….So easy to manipulate…._

Watchtower, Hangar

"There she is" Rhian exclaimed as they arrived in the hangar, everyone else looked rather bemused  
"Erm… there's what exactly?" humoured the Flash.  
Rhian activated a device on his wrist, withing a few seconds a ship that dwarfed the Javelin shimmered into existence.  
"Oh. That, of course"  
"Want more evidence im not here to harm you, this ship could've destroyed the watchtower before any of you knew I even existed, also I just deactivated its defence protocols so none of you will get fried upon entering"  
"Are we supposed to be thankful" said Wonder Woman who was starting to really lose her patience with Rhian.  
"Well as long as it hurts less than when you're shocked and lash out, I call it a win" mumbled Rhian  
"Want to try saying that louder you-" Diana was cut of as Superman once again place a firm hand on her shoulder. Everyone else carried on following Rhian as Wonder Woman and Superman held back. "I don't trust him at all, what if he just trys to kill her or drag her off to Thanagar?"  
"Without been offensive Di, you never gave the impression that you cared for Shayera since the invasion" replied Superman dismissively.  
"I don't" quickly replied Diana  
"Diana everyone was upset or angry, hell I was furious, to a certain extent I still am, but your reaction, I don't understand, your usually so in control. Whether we like it or not, whether that's her brother or not, he is her only chance. We might not like it, but John and Wally would be devastated, J'onn…I don't know and Bruce seems to know something but isn't talking. I have a feeling we'll be needing Shayera sooner than later"  
"You wouldn't understand"  
"Try me"  
"I thought of her as a sister"  
"So did I, we were like a fam-"  
"-no, I mean like an Amazonian sister, she was a warrior like me, a woman, proud, theres no one else from outside Thermyscira that gained my respect to that extent. To be stabbed in the back like that, it's not something I've dealt with before, every time I think about it I just get so much anger build up"  
"Look, have you actually tried thinking about it from her side"  
"Im not going to sympathize with-" begun Diana getting worked up.  
"No ones asking you to sympathize with her, and if you know Shayera she probably wouldn't accept it anyway, I thought about it, after a while from her side, It made me think differently about things I'd always had only one thought on, I always assumed that I would save the Earth no matter the cost, but I thought what if the other cost was Krypton-"  
"Clark, im sorry, but Krypton is gone remember, your never going to be in that position"  
"No I won't, but can I call myself any better, can I critisize her for her actions, if I can't honestly tell myself I'd do any better in a similar situation, think about that Diana, what if you had to choose between Thermyscira and the mans world, everyone makes mistakes but when people in our line make a mistake the consequences are always worse" finished Clark solemnly as he left to follow the others.  
Diana mulled over the idea for a moment before following after Clark

Diana and Clark came aboard the ship just as Shayera was lowered onto another bed, Rhian was busy prepping some equipment, J'onn was still keeping his eye on Shayera, everyone else however were just stood around rather awkwardly. Rhian then drew out a syringe full of a black liquid.  
"What's that?" enquired J'onn  
"Some advanced nanotechnology with a few medicaments thrown in for good measure, it will accellerate her natural healing process tenfold and begin repairing vitals, withing a few hours there should be a vast improvement, physically"  
"Physically, what about the mind?"  
"I've done everything I can for her with the technology available here, if I could get her to Thanagar there'd be a much better chance, but that would take too long, it is up to her now, all I can do is hope she hasn't given up" answered Rhian miserably. A beeping drew his attention "I have to report in, try not to break anything" as Rhian left Batman stalked quietly of after him.

Batman had so far been fairly supportive of Rhian, purley out of necessity. Batman however had no intention of letting him out of his sights. Up in front Rhian sighed.  
"I know you're following me; you can quit sulking in the shadows Batman"  
Batman didn't answer but carried on following anyway.  
"You know im about to revert to Thanagarian don't you I could say anything to them and you wouldn't know even if you stood right next to me"  
Batman stood still for a moment pondering the situation.  
"Here" sighed Rhian throwing a device to Batman  
"Whats this?" finally spoke Batman studying the device in his hands.  
"Put it to your ear, it's a translator"  
Batman didn't answer again but stared at the device suspiciously.  
"Look do you think I'd be stupid enough to trick you, I might get rid of you but then I'd have to answer to everyone else, also im unarmed remember"  
"Fine" was the simple reply as they entered the helm of the ship.  
"Just keep your head down, they'll get suspicious if they see you lurking about" added Rhian as he took a seat, Batman took a seat at the opposite side of the cockpit away from the monitors.

"Ah Captain Hol, we were preparing a search party, next time make sure you check in on time. Can we at least assume you have discovered something due to this delay" Queried the Thanagarian on screen.  
"You could say so, Sir" replied Rhian.  
"….Well some elaboration would help"  
"Were is Captain Monay who I usually report to?"  
"Indisposed, so im taking this one"  
"Don't you have more important things to be doing, General?" asked Rhian with a dangerous edge to his voice.  
"Rhian, I know we don't get along and im sorry for that, but im still in charge of this, what did you find?"  
"I don't think you'd want to know, im not sure you could take it, Katar, Sir"  
"What did you find, also I have a rank so learn to-"  
"Shayera"  
"….What?"  
"She's here on earth, she alive, the situation-"  
"Impossible, Rhian I don't know what has got into you but Shayera-"  
"Died four years ago, yeah, I remember funnily enough"  
"What the hell is she doing there, oh hell, don't tell me she has something to do with this invasion nonsense"  
"She has something to do with it, but I don't know what"  
"Why not?"  
"She's hospitilised, she's in a bad way, I don't know if she is going to make it"  
Katars face seemed to darken at this "Captain as your commanding officer I wasn't to know the entire situation your not telling me something"  
"Katar please not-"  
"That's an order Captain"  
Rhian sighed and cast a slightly apologetic look at Batman before beginning to tell everything.  
Batman came back into the medical bay trying to piece together what just happened.  
"What happened where's Rhian" questioned the Flash  
"In the cockpit telling Thanagar everything" answered Batman  
"What!?" replied Diana, Superman and John  
"It's more complicated than it looks, I believe the person he reported to is actually his father and also one he was ordered to explain the situation, his entire person changed, almost like he could do nothing but tell." Reported Batman.

Rhian shortly followed Batman back into the medical bay only to be eyed suspiciously of everyone.  
Rhian sighed "John, I'd like a word"  
"No, there's a word for you"  
"John this is important, it's about Shayera"  
"Fine, try anything funny-"  
"And you'll make me of no use to anyone, I know" finished Rhian leading John back to the helm.  
"What do you want" asked John as they arrived at the cockpit.  
"I've seen a lot of things in my life time John, im not blind, I can see the way you look at my sister, you love her"  
John was taken back, it wasn't a question, it was a blunt statement "that's none of your business" retorted John coldly  
"Shayera is my sister, Shayera is currently dying, also she keeps dropping in and out of consciousness, during a moment of temporary consciousness she looked straight through me, she didn't even know I existed and to top it off, she mumbles your name, this is my business"  
"I don't see what this has to do with anything, all you've done since given her one injection I sulk about, not exactly helping your sister are you" John kind of regretted those words as he said them, Rhians face told enough, he was furious and bottling it up, the knuckles of his hands were pure white.  
"Prehaps, if you'd listened to me, you'd remember me saying her physical injuries are been cured, however there is nothing I can do for her mind. Lets recap the Shayera I knew wouldn't give up on anything and now life is slipping her because she has given up, your supposedly in love but keep your distance from her, hell even that woman has been closer to my sister than you, I can't be certain but I believe that this invasion maybe caused a difficulty between you two"  
"You don't know the half of it"  
"In any case, she needs a reason to live and im willing to place a bet that you are what she has given up on"  
"So what do you want me to do about it"  
"Its quite simple" said Rhian throwing John a device "Talk to her, I believe you can give her a reason to live, if not well like I said, she'll die, painfully. Option two however will save you all that, click the green button on it and the injection will be neutralized, releasing an agent that will kill her painlessly"  
John looked at the device with disgust.  
"Oh and another thing John, if you kill my sister, I will hunt you down and kill you myself"  
"I don't fear you" returned John  
"Good, that'll make it all the easier, still im hoping it doesn't have to come to that" replied Rhian solemnly  
"I need a moment alone, please" asked John calming somewhat.  
"Fine, but try not to be too long, the longer you leave it the harder it will be to bring her back" Rhian stalked of towards the medical bay, leaving John with an unexpected predicament to deal with.

A/N: Thank you for even more follows, I've got as many as balance already with a 1/3 of the work load, does that mean this is better?  
Also I have a HG/BM idea i'm toying with (yes BM/HG?) so watch this space.

Next Chapter: John has to make a choice, also new mysterious italics guy (probably easier to guess this time) will appear more and possibly Katar.

Once again Thank you for the reveiws and Follows I really appreciate them.

Random-Jack


	5. Batman Secret 1211

Chapter 5

A/N: Most painful to write chapter I've done so far, can't really explain why though? Also spell checker still down so apologies up front.

A/N2: Sincere apologies for the ridiculous time to post this chapter and continue, went on holiday for a month, then forgot it, watched game of thrones (all so far), then remembered but got GTA5, forgot again, remembered and just to top it of my entire streets internet went down for a whole damn week…and now here we are. P.S I'd advise anyone to read from start again or this will make no sense (unless you have an amazing memory from 2 months back)  
P.P.S Sorry about the long notes  
A/N3: And another thing…..(just messing with you all, but congrats if you read this far, and 5 points to Gryffindor or whichever house you prefer) continues rambles.

Just Talking

John made up his mind, this wasn't a movie or a book, he wasn't going to whisper "I love you" in her ears and suddenly she'd wake up fine and make a miraculous recovery. He decided to take Rhians advice and talk to her, but not in the way Rhian perhaps hoped. John looked at his reflection in a blank monitor, he needed to sit down and talk slowly and openly with Shayera, and he didn't want to start making false promises whilst she was on a hospital bed just to bring her round. Having made his mind up, John left Rhian and walked back to the medical bay to find everyone staring at him expectantly. "I'd like everyone to leave please"  
"John are you sure-" begun Clark  
"Thank you Clark, but I need to do this…alone"  
"Okay John, Im sorry" answered Clark  
"Don't be, theres nothing anyone could do"  
As the rest of the League left Rhian walked in from the helm "that includes you Rhian"  
Rhian scowled a little and turned to go back to the helm  
"off the ship Rhian, I don't need you spying on me on your monitors"  
Rhian looked apprehensive about the idea looking at the device he'd recently handed John "Im not going to kill her, here take it back" added John throwing him back the device.  
"Fine" replied Rhian exiting the ship not before John noticed the faintest shadow of a smile flicker across his face, although John could also have swore he heard him mutter something about him been kicked of his own ship as he left.

Silence descended instantly as the door slid shut after Rhian left, John turned around and inspected Shayera. Every trace of the injuries she sustained had vanished, not a cut, not a scar or a single drop of blood, She simply looked like she was asleep and required nothing more than a gentle nudge to bring her around. John edged closer and place the back of his hand on one of her cheeks, John was shocked to notice that she was freezing, he felt anger build up as he felt the urge to march out there and tell Rhian how much of an incompetent fool he is. He held himself however, Rhian seemed to know what he was doing, she looked a hell of a lot better now? Prehaps temperature had less effect on them in these circumstances, after all Shayera wasn't human. John suddenly realised he'd hit the nail on the head "she isn't human" he replayed in his head over and over again.  
He remembered Flashes words suddenly, spoken only a few hours ago "Did you even ask about her past" He hadn't, he never wanted to know, to him she was as human as anyone else, he never gave a second thought to her past. Had she tried to warn him "It can't work between us John, its too complicated" She had, he realised he had over ruled her with some cliché line about being a man and a woman. He lauhed at his own idiocy "man i do come out with some crap when I try my charm" he muttered to himself.  
John pulled over what he assumed to be a table of some sort, no doubt Rhian would get annoyed about it, but he had no proof, he could say Diana did it, then he'd probably wet himself. John laughed at the thought as he dropped himself onto the table and turned to find himself staring into a familiar pair of brilliant green eyes. John stared in shock unable to gather a single thought as Shayera stared right at him for a few moments before dropping unconscious simply stared, it was amazing how much someones eyes could tell you, to John three things stood out the most, pain, regret and one that caught John by surprise dejection. Taking an unsure deep breath John begun.  
"I kow you can hear me Shay, this is usually the part were I tell you how much I need you, how much I love you, but this is life Shay not a movie or game. I do love you Shay, despite it all, but I can't just tell you im going to take you back, I want us to talk, I want you to tell me the truth and what really happened, the invasion, Earth, Hro, your family, us and everything in between. Its my fault to, none of us are perfect, I never asked, I never even wanted to know about your past, now I realise how stupid that was, I don't even know who you are and you barley know anything about me, it was easier that way, but look where it left us" John paused for a moment pondering what to say.  
"Everyone else misses you, in a way, even Diana, even though she'll kill first, then tell you she missed you and your brother Shay, he's here to, why didn't you tell us you had family Shay. I know you Shay, well at least your personality, I haven't given up on us, theres a chance Shay, but you have to beat this first, don't you dare give up on us, all of us"  
John wiped a single tear from his eye, inwardly cursing himself for getting emotional but felt relieved he said what he had.  
"We need you Shay, sooner than later I fear" added John as he left.

Hangar Bay - Same time as Johns talk

"Rasalos, Earth, Shayera" Rhian was leaning agaist his ship furiously trying to piece together the key points. "If she lived, why didn't she call us, why would she stay here for so long, Its not like her" As Rhian slowly infuriated himself he had an idea.  
"How did Shayera,come to be on earth" Rhian asked anyone who was listening.  
"What do you mean" asked the Flash  
"I mean literally how did she get to the earth, people don't just appear out of thin air, there must've been a story?"  
"Could she have teleported, I mean your technology must be advanced" asked Superman  
"Ha you could say so, but teleportation across that distance is still impossible theres simply to much interference"  
"Actually now that you mention it, I recall a news article announcing her, apparently she crash landed and her ship was destroyed beyond repair"  
"A Thanagarian ship, crash landing into some dirt and been destroyed beyond repair…..also highly unlikely"  
"Why would it?" asked Wonder Woman suddenly interested herself.  
"Purley because of the distance, Thanagar is billions of miles away, if her ship ran into difficulties, she'd be drifiting through space, its almost impossible that in such a circumstance you lucky enough to land on a planet, a habitable one even more so, the article, did it mention anything else, surley a crashed space ship would be a rather sought after item here on earth?"  
"Apparently she destroyed the Ship after crashing in fear of the technology harming the planet" added Superman  
"In the rare event of loss of technology on another planet, the orders are clear to remove or destroy, but how would she have been part of this invasion without prior knowledge to it"  
Everyone remained silent  
"She has a ship, somewhere and that ship is the key" concluded Rhian  
"Why would her ship be the key" asked Batman stepping out of the shadows.  
"Because any transmissions, any orders received and information exchanged would be on that ship, everything is recorded, rather usefully for us, accountability purposes"  
Batman thought for a moment "it's right here, ironically right next to your own ship Rhian"  
"It is?" asked Rhian shocked as the rest of the group stared at Batman questioningly,  
"When I went to crash the watchtower in the hyperspace bypass-"  
"Hyperspace bypass, that preposterous the technology was canclled after-" Rhian trailed of as he realised everyone was staring at him rather annoyed.  
"As I passed the hangars I noticed an unusual ship in the hangar, It wasn't anything of mine and it had slight resembelence to the thanagarian ships but I hadn't seen another like it, I threw a tracker on it and the ship vanished but not before its coordintaes were uploaded, it readings though extremely faints and distorted still permeated after the watchtower and the Thanagarian fleet had left, so upon the rebuilding of the watchtower I built the hangars precisely around the coordinates"  
"Must be one advanced ship, I mean mine can cloak but it would've fallen with the tower" added Rhian "Where exactly is it?"  
"over here" gestured Batman  
"Here?" asked Rhian to which Batman merely nodded.  
"Any chance of me been allowed a weapon back" the looks he received said otherwise.  
"Of course not, armour it is then" muttered Rhian clicking a hidden device on his belt, Metal plates begun spreading across his body rapidly encasing him, everything except his head and wings.  
"What are you doing" asked Superman imposing himself.  
"The ship is cloaked, obviously, Nth metal disrupts, so now im going to try and disrupt and hopefully shutdown the cloak field"  
"Hopefully?" asked the Flash  
"Well it could back fire and quite literally absorb all my energy leaving me a lifeless husk, then again not to many people will shed a tear" answered Rhian as matter of factly  
"Surely there's a better way" asked Superman  
"There is always a better way, unfortunately they invole informing Thanagar and right now, even I don't want them involved" answered Rhian as his fist crackled with electric, of which he promptly threw forward. The very air shimmered, warped and flickered as a vague outline of a ship glanced in and out of view. Sweat bedded Rhians forehead and his teeth grated together as held out, blue electricity shimmering around his golden armour. After a few tense moments the Ship solidified into view and the air stilled, Rhian dropped his arm and fell into the kneeling position.  
Despite everything, the Flash rushed up to steady him "You O.K, Rhian?" he asked a suddenly very drained looking Thanagarian.  
"I'll be fine, I Just, needed to, catch my breath, took a bit more than I honestly suspected" replied Rhian standing up. "Come on" instructed Rhian as he opened the ship up.

"Whats going…Hey Wait for me" Called John having just left Rhians ship.  
"I'll go back a keep an eye on Shayera" informed J'onn seeming to appear from no where.  
"What's going on" asked John having just caught up  
"Short version, this is Shayeras ship she came to earth in, from here we can hope to uncover what has really been going on" answered Batman  
"Well here goes" Thought John.

They were just about to enter what they assumed to be the bridge when Rhian suddenly stopped.  
"What are you waiting for, move" sighed Diana  
"No offence but, you don't all need to see this"  
"What do you-"  
"I mean theres probably a lot of stuff on here she doesn't want everyone to know or anyone for that matter" replied Rhian looking equally exasperated.  
"That is kind of the point" replied Diana rather more sternly  
"I don't just mean anything she may of hid specific to the invasion I mean everything, look I'll go through it then-"  
"not a chance" cut Diana  
"What happened to someones word been worth anything"  
"The invasion happened"  
Rhian sighed "we'll see, fine John and Batman can stay and they can tell you anything that they feel necessary for you to know, deal?"  
"I think we all have the right to-"  
"Deal" cut Batman over Diana  
Clark simply left knowing Batman wouldn't budge, Diana held back a moment contemplating punching Batman but relented and also left.  
"Well, here goes" informed Rhian as the screens to the bridge lit up "Well that is unexpected…

A/N4 duh duh duuuuuh, Shayeras pregnant, Joke. Find out sometime before the turn of the year. (Actually the next chapter will be soon)

Random-Jack


End file.
